Specialty’s Cafe & Bakery

I love Specialty’s, everything I’ve eaten here has been super tasty!
Except this. A hot roasted veggie sandwich, with no spinach. It was like half a scoop of roasted veggie mush in some bread. Exactly what it looks like. For the ridiculous price of $ 7.99. The bread is good, hence the two stars. The rest is no star.

Bad customer service. Bad dining experience. I ordered a soup for «here» didn’t get a buzzer, I guess when you do an order «for here» they take your name. I didn’t hear my name and waited for 25 minutes when I asked about my order the rudely said «we called your name». So they called my name 1 time and then left no indication on counter (perhaps they could have left my ticket) that they had my order ready. They then presented my soup that had been sitting for 25 minutes to me in a togo container and nonchalantly handed it over without an bit of sincerity. So why do they even ask for here or togo when you get a togo container either way? I tried to return the mediocre soup but the line got too long. Nope never again. I get it its a crap job I myself have worked as a cashier at a corporate food chain restaurant. But you get what you sign up for, customer service is the job, work as a dog walker if you want limited experience with people.

I left this place disappointed
I ordered a breakfast sandwich and waited for 10 minutes just for a sandwich. With my frustration, I left my order and would go somewhere else!!!
Don’t go to this place. Horrible costumer service

Nice spot to relax before work. I like to get a muffin each time I come here in the morning. The oatmeal banana is my favorite with some orange juice. A great way to start my morning to a good note. The store has awesome music playing each time I visit.

I like this place. The salads are huge for ten bucks. And they have day old cookies for sale (I mean who needs cookies fresh when you can have day old for half the cost). The manager greeted me and was very friendly. Some woman had the nerve to bring her dog in. Like really people in SF are so privileged smh (Not a guard dog, but her pet). What if people have allergies which is very common.

This place is next to my office. I love this place
Could use wifi fii and tried veg grilled sandwitch here
I should say the Best veg grilled sandwitch
Also salads are very good

Not really sure what is going on at this location. Only location where consistent order screw-​ups happen. Ask for: no cheese on sandwich, get cheese; toasted bread, get untoasted; extra pickles, get no pickles. Not sure if using the ipad is the problem or not. If, and that’s a big IF, I go back, I’ll order from a human. Even then, not too sure I’ll get what I ordered. And the prices are just too expensive to compensate for this lack of customer service.

The best croissants in town. Try the butter croissants, they are really buttery, smooth, big and tasty. On my way to work i usually stop here just for them. I skip the coffee because i get really good one at work, but nothing can beat those croissants, plus the price is ok, not overpriced like other coffee shops nearby.

1 star for intelligentsia, 1 star for a stellar bakery that has day old, 1 star for a great selection of sandwiches and 1 star for online ordering /​kiosks in store.

Specialty’s is a special place — well if you consider the «chain» aspect, then completely ignore everything I just said. However, it is special in actually having a decent quality of food compared to some other sammy chains. Sandwiches aren’t soggy, cookies aren’t stale, and menu items aren’t cliché.
Menu: Great choices for everyone (okay, that’s a bit of a sweeping statement), but they do got your meat eaters, gluten free peeps, vegetarians, and even vegans covered with sammies, soups, salads, and pastries. Don’t like anything on the menu? No worries — you can create your own or sub out. Plus, the website is super snazzy and advanced with nutrition options and online ordering.
Food: The black and white cookie. I basically decided to forego lunch after the richness of half of this chocolate cookie with white chocolate chips. Amazing. The end. Just kidding, I then proceeded to eat the other ten cookie options. No — thats sounds wrong again. I got Dawn’s Vegan salad which had fresh and herby focaccia (emphasis on the fresh), grape tomatoes, peas (not something usually in my salad), artichoke hearts, mushies… okay you get the veggie point! It also comes with fat free balsamic, so the healthy eater in me was fully satisfied.
So don’t be deterred from Specialty’s just because it is a chain — options, fresh food, and suited toward those of all tastes, styles, and flava flaves.

order food and hot chocolate…
get my food and wait for the drink…
no barista… wait a few minutes… still no barista… so i mention it to the counter person…
few seconds later she shows up and makes my drink.
large hot chocolate with whipped cream tower on top.
i ask her to put a lid on for me so i don’t make a mess… she acted pissed that i asked
then she pours out half my hot chocolate and puts the lid on…
Whaaaaaaaaaaat the Hell???

Don’t open the doors before 6 am if you refuse to serve prior to 6. This was so frustrating. I was greeted as though they we’re open … I was allowed to view but not buy on my way to work. Smh. Get it together pls

Specialty’s serves Intelligentsia coffee? What a pleasant surprise!
I was really surprised to see the large size of this café, particularly for a downtown San Francisco location. Spacious to say the least! Oh, and not crowded either.
I opted to try the roasted veggie and egg sandwich. Good, but SALTY. The only other breakfast options were baked goods, but perhaps it would’ve been better going that route…
I have to say that the sandwiches and lunch options are far better than breakfast at Speciality’s!

Back after a few years — I can’t believe I work literally *across the street* from my old office! Guess it’s time to revisit the old haunts…
Now that my tastes have refined past cheap, day-​old pastries, Specialty’s is just «Meh.» Came in for a sit-​down lunch with my bf and his sister, and ordered the Large Southwestern Salad ($ 10). They both got $ 7 meat/​cheese/​bread sandwiches, which resembled something my mom would have packed in my lunch in middle school.
The only thing Southwestern about my salad were the corn chips on top. Maybe it’s my Texas blood coming out, but who in heck puts carrot shreds, black olives, and *garbanzo beans* on a Southwestern salad? No chiles, no queso, no red or green bell pepper, no *onions*…wtf?! Don’t forget that side of Southwestern focaccia…
Sure, you can customize the salad when you order, but who wants to rebuild a specialty salad from scratch? I don’t have that kind of time.
They get to keep the third star because damn… those pastries are still bomb.
Not in any rush to get back here for lunch, but if you’re rolling with a vanilla crowd and don’t want to make waves, bring em’ here.

I have only come here for a cup of drip Intelligentsia coffee to get some work done while waiting for a friend, and my experience was just average. There was plenty of seating around, from cushioned chairs to longer tables for groups. The free WiFi was fast, and the service was mediocre. Overall just a solid place to grab whatever you need, whether some lunch or a mid-​afternoon coffee. Cool story.

Not a bad place for breakfast, but it’s only open on weekdays. The oatmeal is vegan and there are good toppings (brown sugar, raisins, dried cranberries, sliced almonds).
Also, they serve Intelligentsia Coffee here, which I had no idea existed outside of Chicago. I didn’t drink any here, so I can’t say if it’s prepared as well as it is in Chicago, but it still gets high marks from me!

There have been a series of bad experiences at this location, and yesterday finished me off. After waiting about 15 minutes for my sandwich and fruit cup, I went to the counter to ask if my order was lost. As it turns out, my sandwich had been sitting there for a long time while they looked for a fruit cup. They run out of things here a lot, so I took the yogurt parfait instead. They offered me a cookie, as they always do when they screw up, to make things good. When she pulled the cookie out, part of it dropped out on the ground. So she gave me a second cookie because they don’t allow broken cookies. Whatever, my lunch hour is ticking away.
So I get back to my desk, and pull out my sandwich, and it’s some mozzarella tomato spinach on foccacia crap instead of turkey on wheat no tomato. My lunch hour is ticking away with a meeting immediately after, and there’s no time to return for either a refund or another sandwich. So guess what? Cookies for lunch, and the last time I’ll ever go to place.

This is a great chain restaurant where you want a nice place to sit, drink coffee and have some food. I’ve also ordered from Specialities online and its one of the most pleasant websites to work on. I ordered a complicated order to deliver to a office and each item was able to be uniquely customized with photos so I knew exactly what I was ordering. I recently got a chance to eat at the restaurant and it’s just as pleasant in person. The only reason i give it ⁴⁄₅ stars is their breakfast items lack a bit in creativity. It’s just egg sandwiches with a variety of toppings, and they are a bit salty.
But overall great spot if you need to get some work done or chat with a friend.

Ohhhh gawd!!! I just cant stand how good their egg breakfast sandwiches are! Really good prices. And really efficient service! Everyone is always super nice and bubbly. I also like the self service machines to order our food, very convenient if theres a line. Plus i never realized how big this place was. Very nice outdoor seating area plus the ambiance is very tech and sophisticated.
Thumbs up!

I have previously enjoyed sandwiches and soups from this location. However, I’ve noticed that the quality of the food has slipped up during the busier times of day.
I had a later lunch around 1 pm today and yet the bakery seemed slightly overwhelmed. There was a long tine and messed up orders were being fixed.
My sandwich came out especially disarrayed. It was obvious at first glance that not a lot of effort went into the prep– it was cut completely unevenly, the bread was falling off, there was more lettuce and sprouts than any other ingredients combined, and only ½ of the bread slice managed to get smeared with cranberry/​mayo for my turkey cranberry sandwich.
As you might have probably deducted, my sandwich did not taste very good — predominantly tasting of sprouts with a hint of dry bread. (Sorry sprouts, I have nothing personal against you, I just like you to be complementary to my dish and not the main ingredient).
I think that charging $ 8 for a regular sandwich that comes on a paper plate (& doesn’t even come with a pickle, mind you) calls for a better delivery. I won’t be returning